GEORGE TOWN – The series of bright flashes and booms that got residents here excited recently have been confirmed to be a bolide meteor that exploded three times – not UFOs.
After making use of available data submitted by observers on the island, Astronomical Society of Penang president Chong Hon Yew told The Vibes that the bolide meteor exploded in the atmosphere at a point 49km north of Tg Bungah.
At the point of explosion, the sound energy emitted is estimated to be at 1.4 terajoules, he added.
“Comparing this sound energy of 1.4TJ with the total energy of the Hiroshima bomb, which is 63TJ (equivalent to 15 kilotonnes of TNT), the sound energy emitted by the Penang bolide meteor is about 2% of the total energy of the Hiroshima bomb.
“The estimate of 1.4TJ is a lower figure, if we include all types of energy that can be emitted by the Penang bolide meteor such as sound, light, etc., then the explosive energy of the Penang bolide meteor should be higher than 1.4TJ.
“This is equivalent to 337 tonnes of TNT.”
The society hopes to get additional data so it can estimate the height of the meteor explosion, its direction and path of travel, and the location of possible fragments.
“From some of the CCTV camera in people’s houses along the meteor’s path, we can see the explosions reflected on car roofs.
“Because the wavelength of sound is much higher than the wavelength of light, and because of the diffraction effect of sound, by the time the three loud booms reached the Earth’s surface, they merged into one, even louder, boom, that was heard by people on the island.”
Police confirmed there have been no reports made on the incident.
The only disturbances were car alarms going off, ceilings rattling and dogs barking after the loud explosion.
Chong said he hopes astronomy enthusiasts could be more prepared for such happenings in future by having equipment ready, so they can collect more data on future bolide meteor events.
There have been reports of similar bolide meteor events in recent years in various parts of Indonesia, where the bright bolides appeared in the daytime and appeared brighter than the sun.
Chong said that these occurrences happen often, though they go unnoticed.
“With 70% of the earth covered in water, if there are 10 bolides that hit the earth, seven would most likely land in the ocean and nobody is there to witness it, except maybe people on ships.
“On land, we have large areas that remain mainly uninhabited like the Amazon jungle and deserts.”
The Astronomical Society of Penang plans to have an online public session to discuss how to be more prepared for such incidents.
A bright spark and loud boom within Penang’s airspace startled many early risers on Wednesday morning, who were puzzled by an object apparently falling from the sky.
Those living in the southwest district of Sg Ara thought that it was a blast from the nearby quarry site, and others questioned if it was remnants of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’ rocket launch to space.
Some even speculated that it was rubbish falling from the International Space Station, which is usually left to burn up in the earth’s atmosphere.
A report from Kulim in Kedah also noted a sighting of bright flashes of light. – The Vibes, July 24, 2021
